ANNUAL MEETING

Stamford, Connecticut, October 18-21, 1999

SUMMARY REPORT

• The work of the Millennium Fund for Mission, a six-year project established in April 1997 to support church-related building or renovation projects in Africa, Europe, and urban centers of the United States, and PRESENTED the first Millennium Fund Awards to 14 United Methodists for distinguished mission service.
• The 70^thAnniversary of the Finance & Field Service, and HEARD the Rev. Larry Thompson of the Virginia Annual Conference witness to the success of the Finance & Field Service unit in fostering faithful support for Christian mission and ministry of The United Methodist Church.

HEARD:

• A progress report from the Landmine Action Task Force and VOTED (i) to hire a Landmine Action Needs Director (LAND) to guide and implement the Board's initiative; (ii) to target the African country of Mozambique for its first demining effort, in consultation with experienced specialists currently working there; (iii) to analyze the cost effectiveness of promising, state-of-the-art equipment that could be part of a humanitarian demining program; and (iv) to consider investing in innovative technologies to make landmine removal faster and safer.

• Presentations by Mr. Roger Winter, Executive Director of the U.S. Committee on Refugees on the extent of suffering in Sudan; Women's Division Deputy General Secretary Joyce Sohl on the July 1999, International Youth Mission Conference; Associate General Secretary Deborah Bass on the special initiative on Sharing Partners Action Network (SPAN).

• President Dan E. Solomon challenge United Methodists to give a human face to suffering and to support the General Board of Global Ministries in its response to human suffering.

• General Secretary Randolph Nugent's reminder that if the true stories of mission were told more broadly, with less focus on issues of contention, persons throughout the world would be better equipped to understand and appreciate the power of the gospel to change lives.

VOTED: (i) that at the 2000 Spring Board Meeting, the issue of global racism will be a major plenary presentation; (ii) that a meeting be scheduled between the Committee to Eliminate Institutional Racism and Central Conference directors immediately preceding the 2000 Spring Board Meeting to dialogue on institutional racism and to develop a global perspective; (iii) that staff seek input on the indicators of institutional racism from the Board's partner churches, with results to be submitted for review and analysis by the Committee to Eliminate Institutional Racism next quadrennium; and (iv) that resources on hate groups are acquired and sent to GBGM directors and General Conference delegates.

RECEIVED a progress report on the evaluation of the structure of the GBGM. According to the time-line established in April 1998, the final report on this evaluation process will be presented at the Fall 2001 Annual Meeting.

RECEIVED a draft report from the Mission Development Committee on the Global Context of Mission and MADE RECOMMENDATIONS for the final copy of the Comprehensive Plan for Mission which will be presented to directors at the April 2000 meeting of the Board.

WELCOMED new Directors Sally Dyck, North Central Jurisdiction (East Ohio Annual Conference); and Thomas Kemper, Central & Southern Europe Central Conference.

APPROVED the nomination of Jonathan Keaton as President of the United Methodist Development Fund.

NOMINATED Randolph Nugent to the position of General Secretary for election by the General Council on Ministries, and ELECTED and APPROVED executive staff as mandated by GBGM Bylaws.

CONSIDERED the impact of the proposed $8 million reduction in the 2001-2004 World Service Offering on the mission and ministry of the General Board of Global Ministries and VOTED to develop a statement regarding the concerns of the Board in this matter.

ADOPTED a resolution affirming solidarity with the Methodist Church of Puerto Rico in its call for an immediate end to all military practices in the town of Vieques, Puerto Rico, as well as a total departure of the United States Navy from Vieques and surrounding areas.

ADOPTED the following resolutions, recommendations, and reports for referral to the 2000 General Conference:

I. New Resolutions:

- Banning the Use of the Child Soldier

- Hate Crimes

- Pillars of Peace for the 21^st Century

- Public Education and the Church in the U.S.A.

- Responsible Travel

- Restorative Justice

- Support the International Treaty to Ban the Land Mines

II. Replacement Resolutions:

- Adoption in a Global Context

- Biblical Language

- Call to the Bishops to Undergird Cooperative Ministries

- East Timor

- Gun Violence in the U.S.

- Holy Boldness: Reaffirming a National Plan for Urban Ministry

- Pornography and Sexual Violence

III. Revisions to Resolutions

- Health & Wholeness

- Immigrants and Refugees: To Love the Sojourner

- Organ and Tissue Donation

- Peace, Justice and the Reunification of Korea

IV. Recommendations

- Extended Provisions for Relationship with Iglesia Metodista de Puerto Rico

- Retain Six Special Sundays

V. Disciplinary Changes

- Criminal and Restorative Justice

- World Communion Sunday

- Administration of UMDF

COMMISSIONED PERSONNEL

GBGM Misisonaries

Church and Community Workers

Office of Deaconess

National Hispanic Plan Ministries

Korean-American Mission Pastors

Recognized as Deaconess

Carolina Labrada, Methodist Church of Mexico

See also:

"Non-Trivial Pursuits for the New Quadrennium" - A Challenge for Mission in the New Millennium by Dr. Randolph Nugent, General Secretary, GBGM9


"Suffering's Recognizable Face" by Bishop Dan Solomon, Chair of the Board, GBGM


The Church in Mission: A Sign of God's Presence on Earth, Recent Data on GBGM Programs